Monday, January 30, 2012

So today, I heard a lady at work talking about the Juice diet. Basically you buy a bunch of fruits/vegetables and become one with your juicer. I can see a benefit to cleanse the body and maybe give your body some nourishment it's been missing. However, I don't think I could do something like this long term. Do I want to cook a delicious meal and watch my boys eat while slurping my beet/cucumber/kale smoothie? Eh, not so much. I think it's great that people are being healthier, but I just know this lifestyle won't work for me. I would get sooo bored, sooo quick!

But, I did start thinking about what I do eat. Are boxed lean cuisine meals better than fresh fruit and veggies? Heck, no. Should I be cooking fish and chicken and getting my calories from fresher alternatives? Yes. So I am going to make a commitment to do just that. I'm not going to fill my cart with pre-made stuff. I am striving to buy fresh meat, fruits, veggies and cook them during the week. Especially if I do a lot of the prep work during the weekend, a fresh meal doesn't take that much longer to prepare. Plus, James can also eat what I'm eating.

I also want to check into some kind of protein shake or perhaps a 'juice' alternative for my breakfast. A 70 calorie yogurt and cup of coffee just aren't cutting it anymore. I need sustenance!

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Today was one of those days where James will look back and say, man that was an awesome day.
It may also be a day where I look back and wonder, "What was I thinking?"
I rolled about of bed at 7 am this morning. Caught up on Facebook/Words with Friends/Scramble with Friends. Then about 7:30, I started getting ready, and got James up. We were out the door by 8:30 headed to Gentry, AR for James' basketball game. Now, a little background on his basketball team. We've won 1 game this entire season. We've both decided basketball really isn't our thing. Well, today changed our minds. James team won 26-22 in TRIPLE overtime! Can you believe it?? I was on edge the whole game! Our boys did an awesome job! We were all so proud and it was a much deserved win.

James had a friend spend the night, which is always fun! We had a birthday party around 4 and it didn't make much sense to drive all the way home and then back to Fayetteville. So, we shopped. We hit up Academy sports and got the boys looking spiffy in some new clothes. Then the boys perused the baseball aisle picking out everything they were going to need for the upcoming season. I see a lot of Under Armour in my future :) Next, we went to Walmart to pickup our birthday gifts. And, finally a little trip to Arby's where James' friend introduced him to the yumminess of Arby sauce.

4 pm rolled around so we loaded up and headed to Chuck E Cheese. Not my favorite place, but I can handle it in small increments. Right away, James won a pile of tickets. I bought the boys some tokens and kindly let them know when these were gone, we were leaving. Somehow those tokens lasted 2 whole hours! Even after 1/2 cup of James' tokens were stolen!!

We celebrated my nephew's birthday, then headed back to H-town to play laser tag (as promised all day long). It was James' first time to play. The prices were really reasonable, so I think we will be going back very soon!

The boys had such a fun day and so did I, but man, I am TIRED! And, apparently so were these little guys. They crashed a little before 10 pm after devouring a huge pixie stick, pizza, and Doritos. The quintessential sleepover food. ﻿

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Exercise:
...has been basically nonexistent this week. Between the hours of nightly homework that James brings home, and our busy weekends, there just hasn't been time. I need to get better about making time for myself to exercise.

Diet:
I've been doing great at sticking to my diet. My cheat meal was on Thursday evening. I met my friend Stephanie at our local Mexican place in town. My hubby should be home Friday, so I'm sure I'll use my cheat meal while he's home.

Weekly weight loss:
This week I have lost 4.4 lbs! I'm at a total weight loss of 14.8 lbs. I already feel like I have a lot more energy and I feel great!

Achievements:
Losing almost 15 lbs in 3 weeks! Go me!

Struggles:
Exercise continues to be a struggle. I really hate it, so I need to work on finding something I can tolerate. I love walking, but I don't always have an hour a day to complete this, or even 30 minutes a day.

Weekly Snapshot:
Saturday night I had a nice salad, Mahi Mahi and poppyseed dressing all for 199 calories! And tasted much better than a boxed lean cuisine.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

What do you think? I'm not sure how I feel about my side items being gone, but I really love my background and the gray/yellow combination. It's my obsession right now :)

Thursday, we ran errands around town and paid some bills, I ordered James a new sweatshirt and he loves it :)

We've had a pretty quiet weekend. We spent yesterday morning in Pea Ridge at James' basketball game. We lost, again, but not by as much as I thought we would. After the game, we had lunch at Chick Fil A, then went grocery shopping to stock up on diet food. When we got home, we went up to my sweet friend Christal's house and picked up the necklace she made me. LOVE IT!! If you want one, please message me and I'll tell you how to get in touch with Christal!

Today, I've been cleaning house and working in our office filing away paperwork and getting ready for tax time. Not a fun job, but I'm too OCD to let anyone else help :)

As for the dieting, I've been doing great this week. I had my cheat meal on Thursday evening. I met my friend Stephanie for dinner at our Mexican place in town. I had chicken fajita tacos, and way too many chips and salsa, but it's ok. I'm excited to see Wednesday come around to see what kind of progress I have made!

Friday, January 20, 2012

Well, this has been an interesting week. You know, Facebook really is the devil. One of my pet peeves is people posting Bible verses, and then turning around and making fun of someone or bashing someone in the next post. This happened to me this week. Yes, I do receive some criticism from some of James' relatives because of the way I act or the way I treat them. However, not 1 of them knows the whole story about a situation. They hear bits and pieces and always make me out to be the bad guy. But, you know, I'm ok with that. They are the first to start trouble and blame me, yet still never lift a finger to call James, let alone come see him. I have basically been called fat this week and also told I am not James' mother. If I speak up, then I am b!tc#ing someone out. I can't win, so I don't even know why I try to help these people.

I feel sorry for them. They are so wrapped up in other people's drama, they are missing the big picture. I refuse to be contacted by any of those kind of people again. I will do what I have always done. Take care of my family, protect and love them with all my heart. My boys are my world and I will not let other people's rude comments have any sort of negative effect on me. So, I'm overweight? I can diet. Maybe they think I'm ugly? Someone thinks I'm beautiful. Appearances change, but an ugly heart radiates more than any 'ugly' feature.

This week started by me finding out that some of my pictures had been stolen from either mine or James' Facebook page. I wouldn't mind if these pictures were kept on a computer somewhere as a memory. But, no. These pictures were stolen from me and then re-posted as another person's property. Maybe they think it's no big deal, but to me, it's pretty low. And they was stolen by someone I once respected and took James to see several times.

Bottom line is...if you need to 2 year old pictures to feel like you're somehow a part of James' life then, ok. I let it happen once, but I guarantee it won't happen again. I don't have to post a single picture of James, but I do because I want people to be a part of his life. I want him to be surrounded by people who love him, not start trouble at every turn. I will be happy to share plenty of pictures on my personal Facebook page. As for the blog, I will continue to watermark and do everything possible to protect my property and my family. It's sad that people who should be united with us to protect James are the very people he needs protected against.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

I have read this blog for close to a year now. What this little boy had to endure is heartbreaking. His mother, Courtney is an amazing woman. She gave Tripp the best life on this Earth, and now he's Heaven's little drummer boy.

Sunday, January 15, 2012

has been full of birthday parties, and stressful moments. On Friday nights, James and I usually have a pizza/movie night. Since I have been doing so good with my diet, I thought I would treat myself with a taco pizza from a local pizza place. It was delicious and I didn't think it would be as bad as Pizza Hut. Saturday morning we had a basketball game followed by lunch at Granny's with the Smith's. I did good, eating a salad with a bit of Ranch. Not the best choice, but it was great. Then, we went to my mom's Saturday night and I made lasagna, salad, and garlic bread for her birthday. I tried to be good by only eating 1 piece of lasagna, but it was a little large. And, I had 2 pieces of garlic bread. FAIL! Today, we celebrated another birthday at Chuck E Cheese. I had 2 pieces of cheese pizza and I wish I had saved those calories for something yummier.

I always worry about my husband when he's gone, but today I hadn't been able to reach him all day. It's not like him to not call me back after an hour or two. Given the last time this happened, he spent a night in the hospital, so I've been a nervous wreck! I finally talked to him about an hour ago and sure enough he had went to the Emergency room. There is no worse feeling than knowing your husband is 500 miles away, sick, and there's nothing you can do about it. I pray that he feels much better in the morning.

I am definitely a stress eater. I know this is a weakness for me and will be something I always struggle with. I worry so much about my hubby and I over eat. It's just that simple. I feel that I've done awful on my diet this weekend, but I'm not going to stop. Tomorrow is a new day and I'm getting back on track. Even if I end up gaining this week, I won't back down. I want to do this for me and I will reach my goals, even if I have some setbacks. Nothing worthwhile is easy, right?

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

I've had a great first week! I am really amazed with my success this week. I know a lot of it is water weight so I don't expect a high # next week, but for now I'm content!

Exercise: I've been walking around the trails in Htown and the HS during James' practices. I've logged 5 days of 20-30 mins of walking this week!

Diet:
I didn't cheat once this week! I've struggled with being hungry but Cuties are my go to snack. They are sweet and juicy and about 40 calories. I am allowing myself one cheat meal per week but not going overboard with it.

Weekly weight loss:
Ready for it??? How about now?? I'm at 10.6 lbs for the first week!!!

Achievements:
Staying on track!

Struggles:
Walking with my popping knee (another post soon) and being hungry late at night.

Weekly Snapshot:
I know I've already posted this once so I need to get better at taking pics :) Macey enjoying our walk!

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Today after James' basketball game and a trip to Walmart to stock up on dieting essentials, we went for a walk. Several of our local parks have walking trails so I loaded up the dog and the boy to take advantage of the 60 degree weather! We had a blast!

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Today I officially started my post holiday diet. I really have got to do something...I just feel so unhealthy. So starting today I am counting calories and starting to exercise. I'm using MyFitnessPal to track calories (1200 per day) and I am walking to begin with. This is not a resolution but a commitment to a healthier me. I lost about 30 lbs this time last year and I know I can surpass that. All I need is dedication and support. I'm going to post weekly updates and also I want to be able to post my struggles if I have a bad day. Even if no one reads it!

Exercise:
First day to start walking. I made 2 laps around HHS while James was at basketball practice (hills and all)! It's not much, but it's a start.

Diet:
Doing great so far! I'm at 1/2 my calories for the day. I found a tasty treat. Melba toast crackers broken into small pieces and Siracha sauce. It's like diet chips and dip!

Monday, January 2, 2012

James started his Christmas Festivities on the Tuesday before Christmas. He went to his Aunt Gail's house. He got a new fishing pole and tackle, a pellet gun, a new camo coat, and a few other goodies. Then he came home Friday to start our Christmases.
Gene got home Saturday afternoon and we got ready to head over to the in-laws. We always have a blast on Christmas Eve, especially watching the kiddos open all their presents. We tried to get a group picture, but with 8 grand kids, that is no easy task!

We had a scrumptious dinner of ham, brisket, potatoes, sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, corn, and plenty of desserts! We then sat all the kids down and let them open 1 present at a time so we didn't miss anything. Here's my MIL trying to explain this concept to the kids :)

We always play Dirty Santa after the kids open their gifts. We ended up with gift certificates to Logan's and Louie's. I can't wait to try out Louie's! It was nice to spend time with everyone, since we don't get to see them that often!

When we got home, we always let James open 1 gift (always jammies) and his stocking. He got some cool Diary of a Wimpy Kid pants and a robe (which he loves!) His stocking was just his ornament and candy.

Then we all got in our comfy clothes and got ready for bed. Well James did anyhow, Gene and I stayed up to watch movies and visit with each other.

My boys on Christmas Eve

We already had all of James' gifts under the tree, except for his bike. That was his Santa gift. Now, this year he's decided that Santa isn't real. I don't know if the bike changed his mind about that, but he can expect 'Santa' gifts from now until he's 42...at least! James woke up before us and we slept on the couch so we wouldn't miss his reaction to everything. I heard him coming down the stairs and woke up when I heard him coming. I asked what he thought about the bike and he said he thought he'd seen that ribbon bow before. And he'd be right....this momma should have sprung for a new bow LOL. He got the bike, some new clothes, movies, a DS game, a skateboard type thing, and his big gift was the Nook. A lot of his friends have them or are getting them for Christmas, so I thought it would be perfect for his 'big' gift. He opened it and played with it non-stop over Christmas weekend. Starting tomorrow, we will be reading books on it, since school is starting back up. He told us this has been his best Christmas yet! I love hearing that!

My new bike from Santa :)

My new Nook Color!

I went ahead and downloaded Angry Birds for him. Also Netflix, and a couple of books.

The next day, we headed to my momma's for Christmas over there. She prepared a huge dinner, like she always does and it was yummy! We never go hungry when we're over there! I got some new pans, Gene got a Garmin for his truck and little boy got some sweatshirts, and the Angry Birds board game. He loved it all. We kind of made fun of my Grandma a little bit, because she had the biggest pile of presents. I individually wrapped everything we got her, which totalled about 4-5 things. I love my Grandma!

﻿

I still haven't put up our tree or anything yet. I've been so busy in our office this weekend trying to get all our paperwork in order and filed away and get stuff ready for tax time. That's another post, but we did take a time out to put up together the gingerbread house. I had bought it weeks ago, and just forgot about it. I put the house together and James decorated. I think it looks great!

Well, we have certainly been blessed this Christmas. James had Four Christmases this year. He's a lucky little boy and we love him with all our heart. Even though he received a lot of toys and fun stuff, we still remind him that Christmas is about Jesus' birth and giving. I think next year we'll do an Angel Tree or something like that. I don't want him to forget that not everyone is as lucky as he is. He's clean, healthy, well-fed, educated and that's plenty. Anything extra is just that much more to be thankful for!﻿

Sunday, January 1, 2012

I re-started my blog back in May of this year and sadly lost all the info on my other blog :( But, I am going to share my favorite monthly post and picture. Here's what we've done this year!

May 2011Weekend in Tulsa
This is probably the last weekend we've had together, kid-free. It was such a blast and much needed. I think it's time for another one!

My favorite picture from May! We cannot wait for baseball to start up again!﻿

June 2011Bacon Wrapped Jalapenos
I've made these for various parties and they are a hit every time! I love that some are super spicy and some aren't. I guess that game is only fun if you like spicy food :)

Our sweet little Macey-dog. Her hair is currently pretty short, so I can't wait until she's fluffy like this again :)

July 2011Sayings by James and Boo-boo
I can't say that this post is my absolute favorite from the month, but it includes Gene's broken ankle which I feel consumed most of my summer and not in a good way!

Totally represents what summer is all about!

﻿August 20114th Grade!
James started 4th grade in August. I must say, this has been our hardest year, but also our most productive. We have learned so much about James and what makes him tick this year. I feel like what we've done and the amount of time we've worked with him has made a huge difference!

Oh, it was so hard to pick my favorite picture from this month! There are so many good ones. But I chose this one, because this was James' first ride on one of those scary carnival rides and with a girl no less :) He acted macho and brave, but I really think he just wanted to throw up afterward.

September 2011Touchdown!!
We were in the midst of football season and James made his first touchdown this year! Then, he went on to play All Star Football as well. We are so proud of him!

Looking at this and knowing what my hubby went through brings tears to my eyes. This picture represents the power of God. He gave you life and he can take it away in an instant. My hubby walked away from this with a few scratches.

October 2011James Turns 10!!
We through James a great 10th birthday party this year! I think everyone had a blast! I had a blast planning it, however it's the last party I'm throwing at the house. James is getting old enough that he wants to invite the entire block and our little casa just isn't big enough. I love making memories with him!

We also went camping this month. I hadn't been camping in several years and despite the cougar we heard, it was a great trip! We can't wait to go again!

November 2011First Basketball Game!
James started Basketball this year. It's his first time to play and he's getting better with each practice. We love watching him play because he's so passionate about every sport he plays!

James killed his first deer this year! Gene said he jumped around so much, he thought the blind was going to fall over!! James was just a little excited!!

December 2011New Ride
I finally got a new car and I love it! It gets great gas mileage and is cute to boot :)

We had a great Christmas this year! I have yet to post our Christmas pics, but maybe one day I'll hook up the camera and download all my photos. My iPhone Blogger app gets way too much use :)

Well, that sums up our year. I cannot wait to see what 2012 holds in store!